Maine Man Collected Benefits in Dead Brother's Name for 20+ Years

A Maine man is ordered to pay restitution after collecting retirement benefits in his dead brother's name for over two decades.

The Etna Man Was Found Guilty of Six Federal Charges of Fraud

Napoleon Gonzalez, 87, of Etna was sentenced this week in a Bangor courtroom for identity theft passport fraud, Social Security and mail fraud. He had been found guilty of six federal charges in 2023 after a two-day trial in Bangor.

Gonzalez Applied for a Social Security Number in His Dead Brother's Name in 1981

The charges stem from Mr. Gonzalez use of his deceased brother's name to collect benefits. Guillermo Gonzalez died as an infant in 1939. In 1981, Napoleon applied for a Social Security number in his deceased brother's name and then filed applications for Social Security retirement benefits in his own name in 1999 and in his brother's name in 2001. Officials say that over the years, Gonzalez obtained many passports bearing Guillermo's name, most recently in October 2017, which he used to travel to Canada in July 2018.

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Gonzalez collected benefits under both identities until March 2020, when investigators had Guillermo's benefits suspended pending an investigation. Napoleon Gonzalez mailed a letter to the Social Security Administration signing the name Guillermo Gonzalez and the Social Security number assigned to that identity, asking for an explanation for the suspension. In the letter, he asked for a quick response, claiming that he was locked in his house due to the COVID-19 pandemic, unable to drive and relying on neighbors for his supplies. He had obtained state identification cards in both names. In January 2020, the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles uncovered the decades-long ruse and alerted federal authorities.

Maine Man Must Pay over $170,000 in Restitution, But No Jail Time

U.S. District Judge John A. Woodcock Jr. ordered Napoleon Gonzalez to pay $175,757 in restitution to the Social Security Administration and, citing his age and health, sentenced him to five months of probation.